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Ukraine

HAS NOT ENDORSED THE POLITICAL DECLARATION

Ukraine has not yet endorsed the Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. It participated in the negotiations towards a Political Declaration: at the fourth round of consultations in April 2022, Ukraine condemned the use of EWIPA by Russia against Ukraine and suggested adding in the declaration language from the resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 1

Statements and positions

Ukraine has spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas in multilateral forums, often referencing its own experience. During the 2022 UN General Assembly First Committee, Ukraine referenced the harmful use of explosive weapons in populated areas2, and in 2023 highlighted the humanitarian consequences of explosive weapon use by Russian forces in Ukraine.3  During the January 2016 Security Council open debate on the protection of civilians, Ukraine expressed concern about the humanitarian impact of EWIPA, and called for stricter norms to protect civilians.”4

Alongside its individual statements, Ukraine has on several occasions aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas. In 2018 and 2019, Ukraine joined some 50 and 71 states respectively to endorse joint statements on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN General Assembly First Committee, calling attention to the devastating and long-lasting humanitarian impact of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and urging states to reverse the trend of high levels of civilian harm 5. As a member of the Group of Friends on Protection of Civilians, Germany has supported statements at the UN Security Council stressing the importance of respecting IHL and the need to enhance the protection of civilians from the effects of explosive weapons in populated areas.6

Ukraine also aligned with the statement delivered by the European Union (EU) during the UN General Assembly First Committee in 2023, in which the EU welcomed the political declaration and highlighted the importance of its adoption. The EU also highlighted the work ahead for implementing the declaration’s commitments, including at the 2024 Oslo Conference.7

1.   Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. ‘Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas – Political Declaration Consultations, Day 1 Afternoon’. Available from:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPllKWRMlNg.

  1. Young, K. 2022. ‘First Committee Monitor, Vol.20, No.2’. Reaching Critical Will. 8 October 2022. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/FCM22/FCM-2022-No2.pdf.

  2. Young, K. 2023. ‘First Committee Monitor, Vol.21, No.5’. Reaching Critical Will. 4 November 2023. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/FCM23/FCM-2023-No5.pdf.

  3. UN Security Council (2016). ‘UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict Meeting Transcript’. https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.7606.

  4. ‘UNGA73 First Committee Joint Statement on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas (explosive weapons in populated areas)’. Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations. 25 October 2018. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com18/statements/25Oct_explosive weapons in populated areas.pdf; ‘UNGA74 First Committee Joint Statement on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas’. Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations. 24 October 2019. Available from: https://article36.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/UNGA74-joint-statement-on-explosive-weapons-in-populated-areas.pdf; ‘Seventy-one States call for Action on Impact of Explosive Weapons in Joint Statement to UN General Assembly’. International Network on Explosive Weapons. October 2019. Available from: https://www.inew.org/seventy-one-states-call-for-action-on-impact-of-explosive-weapons-in-joint-statement-to-un-general-assembly/.

  5. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9042. 25 May 2022. Available from: https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.9042.

  6. ‘Statement on Conventional Weapons’. European Union. October 2023. Available from: .https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com23/statements/23Oct_EU.pdf.

Other State Positions